The Morning After…SYATP

The flags are flying alone today. The left-over doughnuts are stale or donated. And students are wondering ‘what just happened here’?

What just happened, youth workers, is a chance for you to seize the day – yesterday, specifically – and capitalize on your little pole-prayers.

Don’t let yesterday be a one-time, drive-by prayer event. (Especially if you had a heavy hand in organizing or executing it!) Sending a subtle message to your students that prayer is a random, one-time event that requires a T-shirt, a slap bracelet, and all-you-can-eat Krispy Kremes is NOT the intention of SYATP or youth ministries anywhere…

Rather, the opportunity exists to help students see prayer as a daily, hourly, continual event that SPARKS a movement, doesn’t complete one.

2. Give your students a specific moment to pray each day. Have them set a reminder on their phone. Publicize it judiciously in your student area.

3. Encourage your students to become involved in weekly campus meetings at their school. Besides the weekly dose of doughnuts, they’ll also get encouragement, accountability, and spiritual challenge on a regular basis. It also communicates that events like SYATP can be a life-style launch, which is what all youth pastors hope for. It may also spark a passion and vision for their campus…which should always be a not-so-subtle hope & by-product of SYATP.

4. YOU pray. Walk the campus. List out the schools in an area over your desk or on your screen saver. Get a list of educators in your area. YOU pray. SYATP is not intended as your prayer closet – find yours and get in it!

Whatever you do….do not let SYATP feel like the morning after a regrettable event. ‘Man – that was stupid and it didn’t really make any difference in my life over the long haul….definitely NOT doing that again….’

2 thoughts on “The Morning After…SYATP”

Spot on, Darren; thank you! You echo my heart here. And there are groups of students (like this one: http://bit.ly/16CsTCm) who are pulling it off. I dream of the day when youth will be in the vanguard of a spiritual awakening here: http://bit.ly/12jQmHP.